Aussie Open 2014: Ball and Courts faster...

[Luxilon Borg]

The early reports are that the Aussie Open 2014 ball is FASTER than last year, and so are the courts.

Cilic claimed the courts at Brisbane are the fastest he has played on.

Can this be?

Are they trying to avoid another 6 hour final?

As a side note, man the announcers calling the Hopman Cup are clueless, except
for Darren Cahill.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

The early reports are that the Aussie Open 2014 ball is FASTER than last year, and so are the courts.

Cilic claimed the courts at Brisbane are the fastest he has played on.

Can this be?

Are they trying to avoid another 6 hour final?

As a side note, man the announcers calling the Hopman Cup are clueless, except
for Darren Cahill.

If true, then it will be good for Fed.

But, what I heard is that Brisbane courts are much faster than Melbourne courts.

 

[Luxilon Borg]

The early reports are that the Aussie Open 2014 ball is FASTER than last year, and so are the courts.

Cilic claimed the courts at Brisbane are the fastest he has played on.

Can this be?

Are they trying to avoid another 6 hour final?

As a side note, man the announcers calling the Hopman Cup are clueless, except
for Darren Cahill.

If true, then it will be good for Fed.

But, what I heard is that Brisbane courts are much faster than Melbourne courts.

True, although faster courts have not helped him during the Us Open and build up recently.

 

[GameSetAndMath]

Read


http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html

 

[Luxilon Borg]

Read


http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html

"The Swiss great has long been an outspoken supporter of faster playing surfaces in an era where many of the hard courts have been tamed, greatly aiding the defence of some of Federer’s greatest rivals."

I agree with the above and it pretty much says it all.

 

[Ricardo]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

 

[Luxilon Borg]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

 

[brokenshoelace]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

 

[Luxilon Borg]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

I would say the vast majority of counter punchers prefer slower courts. And the number prove it.

 

[Moxie]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

I would say the vast majority of counter punchers prefer slower courts. And the number prove it.

What numbers would those be? C'mon…there's no stat for that. Even if it's true.

 

[Luxilon Borg]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

I would say the vast majority of counter punchers prefer slower courts. And the number prove it.

What numbers would those be? C'mon…there's no stat for that. Even if it's true.

How many indoor titles did Wilander, Muster, Coretja , Brugerra, Chang, Hewitt, Murray, Nadal win?

Nadal has 1 indoor title to my knowledge. Look. Up the other records on the ATP website. They speak volumes.

 

[Ricardo]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

I would say the vast majority of counter punchers prefer slower courts. And the number prove it.

What numbers would those be? C'mon…there's no stat for that. Even if it's true.

long time no c... next time you present an argument, you might want to stop a sec before stating something so blatantly wrong. No stat for that??? there is overwhelming amount of stats, number of titles, matches won by counter punchers... etc etc, people don't even debate that. So what's your point? uzzled

 

[Moxie]

^ Ah, ricardo…how've you been? Missing me, clearly. :laydownlaughing

So, tell me how there is a statistic such that counter-punchers prefer slow courts. I understand that it's prevailing notion, and I'm not specifically debating it. However, a "counter-puncher" is not an exact science, as a category, and I'm pretty sure no one has wrangled them as a group and asked them about surfaces they prefer. And as was mentioned above, someone calls Hewitt a 'counter-puncher,' and it was also asserted that he complained that they slowed down the courts in Oz. Well, that doesn't square, does it? I'm suggesting that prevailing wisdom doesn't = actual data.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Agreed with Fed, ATP has slowed down everything and anything and that's not fair for a lot of players who like it faster (Fed, Hewitt, Delpo, Roddick etc etc).

A quote from Fed in Brisbane:
“I like it a bit faster, to be honest. It’s just nice when the slider drags a bit or the slice stays a bit lower and guys don’t just eat it up, even though it's a decent slice. So I think it's a good thing that it’s a bit faster here.”

Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/sport/tennis/roger-federer-enjoys-pace-of-brisbane-international-surface-20140102-306i6.html#ixzz2pOCZkJKb

This is why players don't chip and charge no more, when advantage has gone towards those who hit passing shots. Too much time for them to pick where they want to pass, so volleyers are at a great disadvantage to start with. Sure grass is still grass and hardcourt is hardcourt which are still faster than clay, but they are too slow compared to years ago. Fed had a lot of potential to play S&V and improve on that part like he did in the early 2000s, but he also knew the advantage got skewed towards baseliners so he kind of became one of those 'grinders' himself, camping at the baseline.... although he was still very aggressive with it.

Don't know who made the decision to slow it down so much, but he is simply not fit for his job.

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

I would say the vast majority of counter punchers prefer slower courts. And the number prove it.

I would say, with all due respect, you don't really know what a counter-puncher is, especially if you think Nadal is a counter-puncher.

A counter-puncher is a player that feeds off his opponent's pace instead of generating his own (this is a very narrow definition, but bear with me). The two obvious examples in recent memory are Hewitt and Murray. And what two slams has Hewitt won? Wimbledon and the US Open. What 2 slams has Murray won? Wimbledon and the US Open. Counter-punchers prefer faster courts. It's one of the biggest misconception that they prefer slower courts. Slower courts produce balls that are more "dead," so the counter-puncher has very little to actually deal feed off.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

I would say the vast majority of counter punchers prefer slower courts. And the number prove it.

What numbers would those be? C'mon…there's no stat for that. Even if it's true.

How many indoor titles did Wilander, Muster, Coretja , Brugerra, Chang, Hewitt, Murray, Nadal win?

Nadal has 1 indoor title to my knowledge. Look. Up the other records on the ATP website. They speak volumes.

As I suspected, your idea of a "counter-puncher" is off. Many of the players you mentioned play nothing alike.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Would you believe rat face...errr Hewitt complained bitterly to Australian officials when slowed it down about 10 years ago?

Why isn't that believable? Hewitt is a counter-puncher who prefers faster surfaces to feed off his opponent's pace...

I would say the vast majority of counter punchers prefer slower courts. And the number prove it.

What numbers would those be? C'mon…there's no stat for that. Even if it's true.

long time no c... next time you present an argument, you might want to stop a sec before stating something so blatantly wrong. No stat for that??? there is overwhelming amount of stats, number of titles, matches won by counter punchers... etc etc, people don't even debate that. So what's your point? uzzled

Please provide them.

But before doing so, let's start with defining counter-punchers, since some here seem to have no idea what that even is.

 

[brokenshoelace]

I should point out that the issue is not so black and white and things differ on a case-by-case basis. People mistake baseliners for counter-punchers, and assume that if you're good on clay, you're a counter-puncher. And let's not even start with the overusage of the word "grinder."

 

[Luxilon Borg]

Counter puncher: player who generally wins most of their points with defense, movement, and reacts to their opponents aggressive play the majority of the time.

Murray, Hewitt, Borg, Wilander, Change. Etc

As pointed out...stats by surface are all available on the ATP website.

 

[Luxilon Borg]

I should point out that the issue is not so black and white and things differ on a case-by-case basis. People mistake baseliners for counter-punchers, and assume that if you're good on clay, you're a counter-puncher. And let's not even start with the overusage of the word "grinder."

Agree..."baseliner" is NOT code for counter puncher. Djoker, Nadal, and Fed are all "baseliners", as was Agassi, but they transition from neutral to offense to defense seamlessly.

Nadal, it should be pointed out, did start as a counter puncher but now has the best forehand in tennis.

 

[brokenshoelace]

Counter puncher: player who generally wins most of their points with defense, movement, and reacts to their opponents aggressive play the majority of the time.

Murray, Hewitt, Borg, Wilander, Change. Etc

I wouldn't fully agree with that definition but it gets to the point (though it ignores using the opponent's pace against them, which is something Hewitt for example, made a living off of).

Borg is a hybrid, and he did more than his fair share of winning on grass (a very fast surface), as I'm sure you'll know.

Wilander won on quick hards at the US Open and at the grass of the Australian Open, in addition to his clay exploits.

Murray and Hewitt are the best examples and the most relevant since it's modern tennis we're talking about, and their numbers don't support your theory at all. Of course Murray has done well on slower paced courts because he's capable of generating his own pace, but the fact that they both won Wimbledon and the US Open says it all really.